Woodhouse, Sarah

(British, 1950– )

Born in Birmingham, Woodhouse was educated at Reading University. Begin with A Season of Mists (1984), the first of a series of novels set in Norfolk during the Napoleonic era. Anne Mathick inherits a decaying farm and rises to the challenge it poses. Her self-possession is shaken by the advances of the intimidating Sir Harry Gerard. The Native Air (1990) finds Dr French, disappointed in his love for Anne, about to depart for India. His ensuing hunt for a kidnap victim uncovers a plot for a French invasion. Meeting Lily (1994) centres on an hotel in Italy run by an Englishwoman. The death of a guest throws her affairs into comic upheaval. Enchanted Ground (1993) concerns a woman who longs to break free of the ancestral home she has inherited, along with the long-standing enmity of her neighbours.

Angela Thirkell, Joanna Trollope, Pamela Oldfield  DH